President Bush - Visiting Canada

Ladskater · Dec 1, 2004

Well, after last years cancelled visit, Bush has finally made it to Canada. Of course, not everyone is welcoming him here with open arms. I think the way some of my fellow Canadians are acting is atrocious. That's not the way to mend the fence with our neighbours to the south. Bush may not be the most popular President, but we should still respect his office and the fact that he is a visitor to our Country.

mike79 · Dec 1, 2004

He's here in Halifax today and the protest group is expected to be huge.

I don't think he deserves our pity at all. He has done enough to strain ties with this country, starting off when he didn't visit after being elected in 2000. Today he's going to thank us for our help during 9/11. While it's a nice gesture, its sure seems a little late to me.

If someone like the Dalai Lama can be shunned in Parliament, the President better suck it up. Something like 90% of Canadians would not vote for him if he ran for office here. Protests should be expected for someone with such a low approval rating. He's done nothing about issues such as soft wood lumber tariffs, or opening the border to Canadian beef.

Since his war in Iraq has been proven to be started under false allegations and Canada never fell for those allegations, it seems high time Bush receives a wake up call from his dear old neighbour up north.

The only good thing about his visit: With the interest he's shown in Canada over his Presidency it will probably be his last visit.

Aloft04 · Dec 1, 2004

Respect should be earned, not afforded any office holder automatically.

Perhaps the protests there are an honest reflection of the idiocy of choosing war in Iraq and all the other self-serving Bush policies that will impact the lives of others on this planet for generations to come.

Personally, I think it would be more 'atrocious' to mask one's true feelings. Don't like his policies and short-sightedness? Let your voice be heard! A voice of reasoned protest with a home-made sign is every bit as valid as a welcome mat with a smiley maple leaf on it.

The emperor has no clothes.

humbaba · Dec 1, 2004

W is visiting Canada? Could you keep him there? :biggrin:

Grgranny · Dec 1, 2004

Humbaba,

Antilles · Dec 1, 2004

I think people should be able to express their opinions if they don't like him. However, those opinions would be taken more seriously if they were expressed with more intelligence. From the reports I've read about some of the protest signs, and the things people are saying at the protests, they just make Canadians look silly. If you don't like something he does, explain why you don't like it.

The politicians certainly need to treat him with respect, because they are the ones that need to mend fences. This doesn't man we have to follow along with everything he says. I think his visit went rather well, all things considered, and I'm certainly no fan of the man.

Ladskater · Dec 1, 2004

mike79 said:
He's here in Halifax today and the protest group is expected to be huge.

I don't think he deserves our pity at all. He has done enough to strain ties with this country, starting off when he didn't visit after being elected in 2000. Today he's going to thank us for our help during 9/11. While it's a nice gesture, its sure seems a little late to me.

If someone like the Dalai Lama can be shunned in Parliament, the President better suck it up. Something like 90% of Canadians would not vote for him if he ran for office here. Protests should be expected for someone with such a low approval rating. He's done nothing about issues such as soft wood lumber tariffs, or opening the border to Canadian beef.

Since his war in Iraq has been proven to be started under false allegations and Canada never fell for those allegations, it seems high time Bush receives a wake up call from his dear old neighbour up north.

The only good thing about his visit: With the interest he's shown in Canada over his Presidency it will probably be his last visit.

Perhaps, but I still don't think mob reaction is the correct protocol. Respect starts in ones own back yard. If we want our neighbours to the south to treat us with respect, then we should set the tone ourselves. We already have people like Carolynn Parrish embarrassing us with her Anti-American comments and further embarrassment by her stepping on a Bush doll on a tv program without everday people adding fuel to the fire.

Canada has taken quite a beating with the mad cow episode and our beef being banned and our soft-wood lumber issues. We need to rekindle our trade relations with the US on a positive note. I don't think Bush bashing is going to us any good. That is my point.

mike79 · Dec 2, 2004

I don't see it as mob reaction. It is a person's right to protest something that they disagree with, and if it involves politics then a group is entitled to it. The scene in Halifax brought out 3000-4000 people who all protested peacefully. As long as it stays peaceful it's one of the only ways a group can voice their displeasure and let it be known to others.

If protests get out of hand it's usually shown to be the people protesting who cause the trouble. Thats's the problem: More often than not the police play a large role that gets downplayed, conveniently disregarded for the supper-hour news. Of course there will always be some who get out of hand and act like a protest is a means to wreak havoc. We just can't always blame the whole group for the acts of a select few.

BronzeisGolden · Dec 2, 2004

What is the fuss about? He is looking around, window shopping a bit perhaps....if he sees anything he likes...we'll invade Canada next month! :rofl:

Longhornliz · Dec 2, 2004

I thought the comment that 90% of canadians would not vote for bush if he ran in your country was a little silly.... how many americans do we think would vote for a canadian? I like Canadians, but I would cross party lines before voting for one over an American.

On national public radio the other night they were discussing how the US is finally ready to move on from the fact that Canada did not send troops to join the allied forces... Could some of you Canadians shed light on what specific beef you have with bush and America? Yall obviously have opinions and issues that concern you, but I am ignorant to them. Oh and another thing... is Canuk a derrogitory term?

PrincessLeppard · Dec 2, 2004

Longhornliz said:
I thought the comment that 90% of canadians would not vote for bush if he ran in your country was a little silly.... how many americans do we think would vote for a canadian? I like Canadians, but I would cross party lines before voting for one over an American.

It's a hypothetical question. If Bush was Canadian, and held the same views he has now, people in Canada would not vote for him. It has nothing to do with him being American....

The problem most Canadians have with Bush (judging from the people I talked to in Halifax at SC) are the same problems that most Americans who voted for Kerry have with him. I think mike79 summed it up well in his post.

Also, absolutely the Canadians were right to protest. If he comes to Nebraska again, I will be out with the protesters. Now, if I had been allowed to attend his speech in Iowa (which I was not, since I'm a Democrat), I would've sat and listened respectfully, because that *isn't* the right place. But outside? Heck, yeah.

mike79 · Dec 2, 2004

Longhornliz said:
Could some of you Canadians shed light on what specific beef you have with bush and America? Yall obviously have opinions and issues that concern you, but I am ignorant to them. Oh and another thing... is Canuk a derrogitory term?

There is no beef with America. The problem is with the Bush administration and how they conduct their foreign policy. Most other countries in the world agree with the Canadian position on this matter so I don't understand why people question what Canada's problem is. Is it because Canadian governments (especially one's like the Mulroney government of the 80's) are so used to sucking up the US administration's butt that it seems odd for Canadians to actually disagree for once? President Cowboy has strained the once strong relationship between these two countries.

When I said that 90% of Canadians wouldn't vote for Bush it wasn't just a guess or anything like that. Polls have been conducted in Canada where they show that if, like PrincessLeppard said, Bush was Canadian and ran for office here only 1 out of ten would vote for him.

Canuck is not a derogatory term. The only time it can be considered insulting is when psychos like Pat Buchanan call Canada: Soviet Canuckistan. Sorry Pat, if we don't agree with beating women, hate gays, and want to bomb everyone.

Snowflake3939 · Dec 2, 2004

The saddest thing is that the media will sanitize the coverage of Bush's visit to Canada and the US public will probably never see exactly how many people actually protested during the visit.

Ptichka · Dec 2, 2004

I recently became aware of how non-American media distorts the facts as well (as most here know I am not exactly a Bush supporter, to put it mildly). I just came back from Mexico, where I met a very nice Australian couple. We started talking, and they asked why Bush was so anti-gay, when Australia was so open and liberal. I got tired of it, and we had approximately the following conversation:

I: In Australia, do gays have a right to marry?

Aust: Of course not!

I: Well, can they claim survival benefits?

Aust: No...

I: Oh, perhaps they can adopt a child?

Aust: Absolutely not! That's for a man and a woman!

I: Then what exactly can they do?

Aust: They can live together, and not be bothered.

I: Well then, Australia has exactly the state of affairs that President Bush is trying to promote in the US, and you share the views of such a vilified supposedly homophobic zealot!

Ravyn Rant · Dec 2, 2004

Some of us seek out Canadian news sources...

Snowflake3939 said:
The saddest thing is that the media will sanitize the coverage of Bush's visit to Canada and the US public will probably never see exactly how many people actually protested during the visit.

I must say I was very gratified to see that 4,000 people in Halifax showed up when only 1,000 were expected. Protesters on this side of the border are penned up so far from where Bush will be that he doesn't see them.
Of course, he'd dismiss them as a "focus group" if he did. My thanks to our northern neighbors for not being afraid to call a moron a moron.

Rave

PrincessLeppard · Dec 2, 2004

Ptichka said:
I: Well then, Australia has exactly the state of affairs that President Bush is trying to promote in the US, and you share the views of such a vilified supposedly homophobic zealot!

But is Australia trying to make it illegal for gays to ever marry? I'm not sure of the political system there, but to the best of my knowledge, no one is trying to amend a constitution-like document to limit rights to a group of people.

BTW, American TV has never shown Muslim clerics condemning the violence, kidnappings and murders in Iraq. So the distortion and misinformation goes on and on...

Antilles · Dec 2, 2004

Irag upset Canadians because Bush did it without the approval of anyone else in the world (UN specifically). Canadians are also upset over mad cow, and more upset over softwood lumber. You can add that Canadians as a group seem to lean more left than Bush does. We certainly have people who share his social views, but polling numbers seem to indicate we have less of a "religious right" than the US.

I also think people are just so used to not liking him, that they can't seem to view Bush objectively anymore. Instead of looking at individual policies and assessing them, people just seem to hate eveything about him.

Canuck is a term that Canadians often use. I suppose it's similar to the word "Yankee", wich doesn't seem to be construed as derogatory.

Longhornliz · Dec 2, 2004

Thanks my Canadian pals!!! The story is definately being spun differently here.

Ptichka · Dec 3, 2004

PrincessLeppard said:
But is Australia trying to make it illegal for gays to ever marry? I'm not sure of the political system there, but to the best of my knowledge, no one is trying to amend a constitution-like document to limit rights to a group of people.

Nobody in America was trying to make such an ammendment until gay marriages became a real possibility. In Australia, it's not even a debate. I am not sure people there wouldn't support such an ammendment if they thought gay marriage was a real possibility. In fact, I got an impression that it's far easier for gay couples to adopt a child here than there. Of course, I'm writing this from the safety of the one state in the nation that recognizes full gay marriages - the infamous Massachusetts! We've had them for 7 months now, and the sky hasn't started falling yet.

BTW, American TV has never shown Muslim clerics condemning the violence, kidnappings and murders in Iraq. So the distortion and misinformation goes on and on...

I don't watch TV, so I can't comment on what's shown there. I get my news mainly from NPR, as well as a few maganizes such as New Yorker and Atlantic Monthly. I am certainly aware of the condemnations, as well as of the incredibly important job the clerics did in Baghdad when they were essentially the only authority that people would listen to; they were the only ones who helped stop the absolute chaos that followed the fall of Sadam regime.

Antilles said:
I also think people are just so used to not liking him, that they can't seem to view Bush objectively anymore. Instead of looking at individual policies and assessing them, people just seem to hate eveything about him..

ITA. Whenever I hear Bush's voice on the radio, I just want to shut it off. I dislike him so much, it makes it difficult to recognize among his policies a few I actually agree with.

BronzeisGolden · Dec 3, 2004

ITA. Whenever I hear Bush's voice on the radio, I just want to shut it off. I dislike him so much, it makes it difficult to recognize among his policies a few I actually agree with.

I have the same problem. I like to think of myself as a very objective person that will listen to every side, but Bush's "I'm a super Christian reformer hero" facade leaves me cold. Why are they wasting time worrying about gay marriage and pot? Right or wrong, are those really the most pressing issues facing our society today? I wish he would come to my small town in TN and see what meth/coke/STDs (among heterosexuals) are doing to this community. It is very sad, indeed. But, I guess he has pinpointed the issues that drove so many in the red states to the polls....too bad those are the least of our worries!

President Bush - Visiting Canada

Ladskater

~ Figure Skating Is My Passion ~

mike79

Aloft04

humbaba

Grgranny

Da' Spellin' Homegirl

Antilles

Ladskater

~ Figure Skating Is My Passion ~

mike79

BronzeisGolden

Longhornliz

PrincessLeppard

~ Evgeni's Sex Bomb ~

mike79

Snowflake3939

Ptichka

Forum translator

Ravyn Rant

Totally 80s Dance Party!

PrincessLeppard

~ Evgeni's Sex Bomb ~

Antilles

Longhornliz

Ptichka

Forum translator

BronzeisGolden

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